Colin Staub is a reporter at Resource Recycling. He can be contacted at [email protected].
Inland Empire Paper Company operates a 110-year-old paper mill that uses recycled fiber near Spokane, Wash. | Courtesy of Inland Empire Paper Company
A Pacific Northwest paper mill has begun producing new grades of paper made from recovered fiber, a response to changing end markets and growing customer interest in recycled content.
Several companies forecast that fiber costs will continue to rise throughout 2021. | sylv1rob1/Shutterstock
Paper mill operators anticipate strong demand for corrugated packaging will continue to drive up prices for recovered fiber, according to recent earnings calls.
Massachusetts is the latest state to propose extended producer responsibility for packaging, the largest component of the residential recycling stream. | Thanatos Media/Shutterstock
An expansive packaging stewardship proposal was recently introduced in Massachusetts. Meanwhile, a bill providing state assistance to bolster recycling markets has cleared both legislative chambers in Maryland.
Constellium is among the largest consumers of used beverage cans in the world. Huguette Roe / Shutterstock
Constellium, which runs a major recycling operation in Alabama, will borrow funds for a number of sustainability projects, including efforts that will significantly increase the amount of recycled aluminum the company consumes.
U.S. exports of recovered commodities decreased in 2020, continuing a multi-year trend. | Jose Luis Stephens/Shutterstock
Recovered paper shipments from the U.S. to China slowed immensely as 2020 drew to a close, newly released figures show. Meanwhile, scrap plastic exports decreased during the year, but shipments to certain countries grew sharply.
Legislators in nine states, including Maryland, say they will collaborate to push extended producer responsibility policies for plastic packaging. | tokar/Shutterstock
The industry-led Recycling Leadership Council published a set of policy recommendations for national lawmakers. Meanwhile, state legislators are collaborating to push for extended producer responsibility in nine states.
China’s largest paper company continues to source recovered fiber from around the world but is converting it into pulp before shipment into China. | safakcakir/Shutterstock
Nine Dragons announced plans for a $4.6 billion paper mill in southern China, one of the company’s huge investments in response to China’s recovered fiber imports ban.
A senior economist at recovered paper research firm RISI recently spoke on the forces driving the OCC market. | Quang Ho/Shutterstock
The end of 2020 was marked by promising recovered fiber prices. An analyst says that’s due to strong domestic and international demand, despite China’s move to cease buying.
In the 2020 fiscal year, Tucson collected some 5,300 tons of glass for processing, representing a cost of more than $567,000. | Africa Studio/Shutterstock
Beginning this month, glass is no longer collected at the curb in Tucson, Ariz. The move is part of a push to reduce overall recycling costs, but it jostles the strategy for a material that has seen steady downstream demand.
The state of New York will provide funding to create a Center for Glass Innovation. | Torychemistry/Shutterstock
A government grant will support a collaborative project to bolster end markets for recycled glass and improve the quality of the glass stream throughout New York.